Approximately 38 percent of adults in the United States aged 18 years and over and nearly 12 percent of U.S. children aged 17 years and under use some form of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM)

According to the newest figures from the 2007 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), an annual study in which tens of thousands of Americans are interviewed about their health- and illness-related experiences, developed by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), a part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately 38 percent of adults in the United States aged 18 years and over and nearly 12 percent of U.S. children aged 17 years and under use some form of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM).

That’s a lot of therapy outside the mainstream of “traditional” American medicine. According to the survey, most of the care was for pain. The higher the level of education and socioeconomic level, the more likely the use of CAM. As CAM is rarely covered by US insurance carriers, more wealthy people are more likely to be able to afford such care.

No statistics for effectiveness were released, but it is obvious to me that the sheer numbers speak for themselves. US insurance carriers are missing a huge chunk of the overall patient care picture by not covering CAM. The US is so far behind most other first world countries in the medical care of its citizens it just screams out for reform. Nowhere else in the world are supposedly free people treated so poorly medically as we are in the US, generally speaking.

It comes as no surprise to those who are currently uninsured or under-insured, that fully one in four US citizens have none or inadequate access to medical treatment. Those fortunate enough to have the means to buy insurance, are usually treated to a policy that excludes effective CAM treatments. A few avant gard carriers do include a small number of CAM sessions when ordered by one of their participating physicians. And, although physician referrals restrict access somewhat, it is perhaps the most reasonable way to ensure adequate care.

In the end, however, I’d like to see a universal healthcare package similar to that which the French enjoy – where everyone has access and proven CAM therapies are included in the deal. Unfortunately, greed reigns more than sense in the US when it comes to health care and I doubt I’ll see universal health care in the US in my lifetime.